Taking Steps to Better Balance Flying Opportunities

Date:
August 10, 2017
Type:
AFA Article

Source: United Airlines

Dear Flight Attendants,

The summer travel season is coming to a close, and I can't thank you enough for all you continue doing to create lasting memories for our customers. Your efforts and those personal moments of connection you have with all those who step on board our aircraft are what help United soar.

I know that running as two separate airlines has been really hard on our Flight Attendants and it has led to unfair seniority situations in most of our bases. Unfortunately, we can't really fix that until we get to a common crew management system (CMS) in October 2018. And while we can’t fix it today, we have worked closely with AFA to at least come up with some changes that will benefit many of our Flight Attendants based at EWR/NTA and DCASW.

Starting with the winter schedule, which goes into effect October 29, we will concentrate all of our Boeing 767-400 flying in Newark, moving the aircraft from Washington, thereby creating additional bidding opportunities for our EWR/NTA-based Flight Attendants. We will replace the 767-400s in Washington with Boeing 767-300s currently flying out of Newark. This means that there will be more 767-300 flying for DCASW, which will be flown by pmUA Flight Attendants.

We will also be moving some flying between the hubs to at least alleviate some seniority discrepancies. For example, we will add pmUA flying time to ORDSW that was previously crewed out of other bases. Similarly, we will add flying to pmCO IAH that was previously crewed out of other locations. This additional flying means that we will be able to help reduce senior Flight Attendants being on reserve while adding flying positions. While this isn't the most cost-efficient way to fly the schedule, it's just the right thing to do. We will have more information to share on this soon regarding specific flight segments that reflect these changes.

I know that these moves don't come close to solving all of the seniority issues that running as two separate airlines has created. We are committed to getting the CMS integration done on time and it is our top IT priority. But in the meantime, we hope that these aircraft swaps and transfer possibilities can at least do a little to create better opportunities for our Flight Attendants prior to integration. We’ll work with AFA to continue to explore potential opportunities addressing quality-of-life issues you have told us and your Union leadership are important to you -- as we keep working toward a common CMS.

Thanks for all that you're doing every day to deliver exceptional customer service. I'm honored to have the opportunity to work with you as the new VP of Inflight Operations. Providing the support you need is my top priority, and the best way to do that is by developing a common CMS and successfully implementing your joint collective bargaining agreement. We will continue doing everything we can to get that done, and get it done right.